Second entry

Tuesday, 16 November 2010

An understanding and knowledge of an audience can enhance and focus the communication

By first researching the target audience a designer is able to better communicate the chosen message behind a piece of work. So for a designer to fully understand the target audience thorough research needs to be done or else the the piece risks losing focus. Depending on the audience the media in which the piece is done also makes a big difference. It wouldn't be very practical designing a web ad aimed at over 70s when 85% of over 70's don't have access to a computer. To better understand an audience looking at past and present events and cultural differences play a big part.

Barnardos advertising campaign

Barnardos are known for using shock tactics in their advertising and have done so in this piece. When thinking about a newborn baby hospitals and cleanliness come to mind, a cockroach is normally found in very dirty run-down conditions. By having the cockroach coming out of the babies mouth it shocks the audience due to a dummy normally being in a babies mouth. The text " There are no silver spoons for children born into poverty" ties into the image and portrays a powerful message.

This advertisements is intended to inform adults in decent living conditions on newborns in poverty-stricken countries and also in more western countries too. The piece works well because it knows it"s target audience and due to the shock tactics used in the image won't be easily forgotten by the audience. One of the pitfalls of this kind of advertising is that you are limited in where it can be show.

NHS stop smoking advertising campaign

The NHS stop smoking advertising campaigns also use some shock tactics but are toned down in comparison the advertising campaigns of Barnardos. The designer has researched the target audience which is why this ad works so well , this ad is trying to persuade its audience to stop smoking. this ad would most likely be seen in hospitals, health magazines and other mainstream forms of advertising.

For a design to be successful in delivering a message it is essential for research to be done into the target audience. Without the designer having a full understanding of the audience there could be a barrier, so factors like culture, age, sex, and social situation all need to be taken into consideration.

The notion of inspiration derives from constant inquiry based on research, observation and experimentation